The team behind Wine Australia’s Growing Wine Tourism program has won a Wine Industry IMPACT Award for building the capability and competitiveness of Australian wine producers.
Wine Tourism Australia and Fastrak Asian Solutions, together with Wine Australia and the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC), have won the ‘Tourism’ award for delivering practical and hands-on workshops and webinars for businesses looking to develop their wine tourism experiences for inbound tourists.
The Growing Wine Tourism program, launched in October 2018 as part of the Australian Government’s $50 million Export and Regional Wine Support Package (the $50m Package), offers tools, strategies and detailed market analysis to maximise the impact of tourism on regional wine communities.
Since its launch, more than 450 people have participated in the program, which has delivered 20 workshops in 16 wine regions and 17 live, interactive webinars for those who could not attend a face-to-face session.
Wine Australia Chief Executive Officer Andreas Clark said, ‘we’re thrilled that the Growing Wine Tourism program has been recognised in the Wine Industry IMPACT Awards.
‘Tourism can be hugely important to winery profitability and this program has created a suite of resources that will have ongoing benefits for wine producers long after the $50m Package ends.
‘Participants leave the workshops and webinars with an online toolkit of templates, calculators, strategies and case studies to support business decision making and drive sales and profit growth.
‘Ultimately, it’s about maximising the impact of tourism on a winery’s bottom line and creating memorable, high-quality experiences that create lasting brand connections’, he said.
Accepting the award at the Wine Industry IMPACT Awards dinner, together with Wine Australia, were Jessica Keen, ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Industry Development and Capability Manager at ATEC, Robin Shaw, Founder of Wine Tourism Australia, and Richard Beere, Managing Director of Fastrak Asian Solutions.
ATEC Managing Director Peter Shelley said, ‘the Growing Wine Tourism program has been hugely successful and highly welcomed by wine businesses across Australia, who have recognised the enormous opportunities in connecting their product to the international market via a tourism experience at their cellar door.
‘International visitors are looking to connect with meaningful experiences, and food and wine have become major motivators for travel. It’s been great for ATEC to work with Wine Australia in delivering a program that will support what is one of the fastest growing segments of the visitor experience’, he said.
Founder of Wine Tourism Australia Robin Shaw said, ‘enhancing a business’ wine tourism experiences doesn’t have to be an expensive or time-consuming exercise.
‘Growing Wine Tourism gives people the tools and inspiration to elevate their existing offering for a broader audience and generate more direct sales’, she said.
Managing Director of Fastrak Asian Solutions Richard Beere said, ‘this award fantastic but the real reward is seeing so many businesses having so many great wine tourism experiences ready to go’.
The Growing Wine Tourism toolkit has been a particularly popular component of the workshops and webinars, with Stuart Moffatt of Pindarie Wines commenting, ‘the tasting calculator spreadsheet is amazing’ and Catherine Mullany of Ballinaclash Wines saying, ‘it was one of the most valuable and relevant workshops I have attended’.
The uptake of the tools and strategies has also been positive, with Natasha Killeen of Stanton & Killeen saying, ‘the workshop has caused me to make a fundamental shift in planning the future of our cellar door and restaurant business’.
Mariane Bornelli of The Cheese Barrel & Company said, ‘I came back with 20+ opportunities of possible improvements, experiences and marketing strategies. Four are already underway.’
For a list of upcoming Growing Wine Tourism workshops and webinars, visit
Pictured from left: Richard Beere (Fastrak Asian Solutions), Jessica Keen (ATEC), Dr Darren Oemcke (Hydra Consulting), Robin Shaw (Wine Tourism Australia) and Brett Murphy (Wine Australia).
